Nano-mechanical properties of silver-welded YBCO bulks

Abstract

The mechanical properties of melt-textured YBCO bulk boundaries are a topic of special interest especially in the manufacturing of superconductor devices for engineering applications. Instrumented indentation technique is a powerful tool widely employed to characterize the mechanical properties of small volumes. We presented results of the nanohardness (H) and Young’s modulus (E) across [001]-welds fabricated by silver welding. The residual imprints performed by a sharp tip indenter were observed by Field Emission Scanning Electron Microscope (FE-SEM) to investigate the different fracture mechanisms nucleated during the indentation process. Results show a decrease of the nanohardness across the grain boundary related to the appearance of a “welding path” free of Y-211 particles. The FE-SEM images show chipping and sink-in effects in that region. Remarkably, for zero-angle welds the mechanical properties are unaltered across the joint, thus probing the high quality of silver welds for large-scale applications.